Final Mock Draft

With six days until the NFL Draft in Chicago, it is time I put together my final three round mock for the Baltimore Ravens.

1st Round- Melvin Gordon RB Wisconsin

The more I think about this pick, the more I think it is going to be Gordon. The Ravens are known for always picking a quality prospect that makes an unexpected draft day fall. While Gordon may not be considered a falling prospect, we have seen RBs become less and less valuable when it comes to the draft. While Gordon doesn't fit an immediate need, the productive runner makes good long-term since and is definitely a value pick.


2nd Round- Devin Smith WR Ohio State

This years draft is absolutely stacked with wide receivers. With that, one potential first rounder is bound to tumble during the draft. In this scenario I am guessing that it will be Smith simply because the media hype other guys are getting at this point. This pick would be great for the Ravens, in fact, many people have predicted this being their first round pick throughout the draft process.

3rd Round- P.J. Williams CB Florida State

Yet another value pick here for the Ravens. However, this one fills an immediate need. This guy was once touted as a first round prospect due to his athleticism and relatively weak CB class. However, after some off field problems, his stock has slipped.

Jordan Speith...Maryland's Golfer (Kinda)

A couple weeks ago I wrote about Tiger Woods and his impact on the game of golf. While Tiger isn't really a Baltimore sports story, it was a big enough story to talk about. This week, I bring the biggest story in golf today, and oddly enough, a baltimore golf story.

If you are reading this, I'm sure you are aware of Jordan Spieth and his Master's win. This 21 year old star has the change to bring golf back to the forefront of sports. Now I'm sure you think I'm crazy. Spieth isn't from Maryland. In fact, he lives in the heart of Texas. But hear me out....

Back in Baltimore, we don't care about the companies like Nike and Adidas. We have our own. Our pride...Under Armour. Now most people know who UA is, they are one of the biggest sports apparel companies in the world, but not many people associate them with golf. Especially, when talking about the PGA Tour. In fact, UA founder Kevin Plank recently told the story of him and two other Under Armour employees franticly withdrawing $8000 cash just to get a player to wear their clothing in the Masters. Fast forward to now, Jordan Spieth is perhaps the biggest name in golf. While Tiger and Rory are still perhaps the most well-known, Spieth's win has catapulted himself into that conversation. And, best of all, you guessed it...Spieth is the face of Under Armour Golf.

So with that, it doesn't matter that Spieth is a Texan. He is Baltimore's Texan. He is Baltimore's golfer.

Orioles: Week in Review

Well baseball season has officially begun and the Orioles have won their first series of the year. This is the first installment of a series that I will do throughout the season reviewing the prior week for the Orioles.

Game 1- The Orioles started the season hot with a win over the Rays. O's ace Chris Tillman put in a solid effort throughout the middle innings and put the team in a great position to win. The injury and suspension riddled line up was carried by last season's hero Steve Pearce and new comer Travis Snider. Pearce continued to rake at the Trop with an opening day home run.

Game 2- The Orioles put in another solid effort against the Rays. Through an early inning offensive explosion, the O's jumped out to a commanding 6 run lead. Steve Pearce continued his "Ray-killing"ways with another home run. O's pitcher Wei-Yin Chen didn't quite have his best stuff, running out of steam in the middle innings. However, the bullpen was able to pick him up and preserve the win.

Game 3- With the chance for the early season sweep, Miguel Gonzalez took the hill for the O's. Much like the previous two starters, Gonzalez put up a solid, but far from dominating effort. Unlike the first two games, the O's offense was non-existent , failing to score a single run. With that, the O's fell in the final game of the series by a score of 2-0.

Overall, the opening series for the Orioles was a good one. However, it is apparent that the success of the team is going to rely primarily on the ability of the starting pitching. If they can get deep into games, the offense will be there in the majority of the games. With a series win under their belt, the O's will play their home opening series against the Blue Jays later today.

Tiger Woods and His Meaning for Golf

With Tiger's recent announcement about returning for the Masters, I wanted to take some time to think about how much Woods means to the game of golf.  Ever since I was little, Woods has been The Guy. There was no one who could make the game as exciting to watch, let alone compete with him. Frankly, he was my idol. Then came that fateful Thanksgiving, when the world found out about the real Tiger. I was crushed. Don't get me wrong, I think Tiger's actions were despicable and he deserves every bit of hatred that the general population gives him. However, to this day, that isn't the Tiger Woods I see. I see the Tiger who made golf cool to watch. I see the Tiger who made me want to play.

For that reason, I was happy to see Tiger return to form following his public shaming. I was happy to see the PGA Player of the Year Tiger back on the course. However, it was obviously short lived. Now us golf fans are subjected to nonstop questions about whether or not Tiger will regain form.

This brings me to my point. It isn't just us Tiger fans that are rooting for a return to form. The PGA Tour needs it. Since Tiger has decline, and more recently not played, the game has failed to capture the casual fan. With that, the game is no longer growing. Kids just now seeing the game don't have someone to look up to like we did. Sure, we can hope for Ricky Fowler or Jordan Speith to take over as the "next Tiger", but who knows when we will see someone dominate at a level like Tiger did.